Each Brand Has A Story. Each Story Has A Guide.
In this article:
What is a brand story?
It answers questions.
It reads well.
It shows a human face.
It focuses on customers.
It entices a switch.
How to write a story for a brand?
Knead in the brand’s personality and tone of voice.
Have your target audience in mind.
Use complex descriptions through simple language.
Explain the problem and the solution.
It’s poetic to talk about souls and discovering your brand’s exquisite essence before revealing it to the world. But what is a “soul,” and why does it matter so much in a brand’s story and personality?
From a company owner perspective, an essential part of finding out who your company is is going through an educational journey focused on branding, brand equity, and the importance of a brand personality and tone of voice.
From a branding professional perspective, it’s about how to bring out the best of a company through genuine words and a story that engages people who have the potential to form a community of supporters.
What is a brand story?
It answers questions. The who, what, where, when, and why should all be answered within a brand story. Merge your company’s core values as well, even if not explicitly.
It reads well. A story audacious enough to request people’s attention better be a good, well-written one. The more purpose the story has, the better.
It shows a human face. Companies are entities; a space with employees who work to produce a service/product. Brands are ideologies; a realm where supporters meet on common ground and indirectly help the brand grow bigger and stronger.
It focuses on customers. A company is built to either serve the ego of its owner or the needs of people. Choosing the latter is wiser.
It entices a switch. Not only will your company offer similar services/products to your competitors, but it will also share the same customer base. You want them to switch? You gotta show them your unique selling propositions (USPs).
Some out-of-touch companies put the “why” aside while it’s the most genuine answer to that question that attracts people.
Why are you in this business?
Why should I care about yet another restaurant by the sea?
Why should I become your customer?
The switch from brand to brand is not easy, and most probably your company did not invent nor discover the wheel, which means you’ll be jumping into already populated waters in almost all fields. The least you could do is be genuine with your intentions and purpose.
How to write a story for a brand?
Knead in the brand’s personality and tone of voice. Anything and anyone without a personality is too bland to demand attention, let alone loyalty. Within the personality exercise, grade from 1 to 10 the following character traits: Excitement, Ruggedness, Sincerity, Competence, and Sophistication. Then, fill them out with more details based on how you see the brand. A ruggedness score of 3/10 belongs to a brand that’s somehow upscale and neat, with certain high standards, like Apple; an 8/10 score is closer to Hard Rock Cafe. Within the tone of voice exercise, delegate adjectives to each of the following: Character, Tone, Language, and Purpose. Tone could include “straightforward, fun, and inviting,” while Language could be “clear, persistent, and occasionally witty.” These will help later on with social media and marketing campaigns and will set out the tone to be used throughout all communications.
Have your target audience in mind. When writing, the community you’re aiming to build should stay in mind. If the brand is meant to be inclusive, don’t list all the groups of people targeted, instead, merge them into one unified community that shares the same pain point/goal/interest along with what services/products they’re being offered.
Use complex descriptions through simple language. Adding color to a story makes all the difference. It’s been scientifically proven that engaging stories affect the mind in ways that make the person friendlier, more generous, and receptive to information. Still, simplicity is highly reliable when talking to an ocean of diverse people, so shelve the literary complex terms and analogies.
Explain the problem and the solution. In every story, there’s a protagonist facing an issue and venturing into solving it. Explain the conflict (problem you’re solving), the climax (your target audience’s pain point with the problem), and the resolution (how your service/product can fix things).
People don’t want to be told who you are or what they should think of you. When you meet someone for the first time, the impression they leave on you is based on your own preferences, not theirs. With how advanced and analytical we’ve become, it’s slightly harder to fall for lies or inflated truths.
Marty Neumeier, a branding genius whose many talents and insights propelled Silicon Valley companies into branding competition back in the 80s, has summed up the company-customer relationship in two sentences:
“Your brand isn’t what you say it is. It’s what they say it is.”
Focus on the reason why you exist (customers’ needs) and why you’ll be making money and helping your employees learn (customers’ money and feedback), and you should be good no matter how small or big your company gets.
This article was originally published in Hotel & Catering ME’s August 2023 issue and can be found online here.